Observations on the avifauna of Miani Hor, Balochistan

Miani Hor, a Ramsar site, is an important coastal wetland along Arabian Sea. This is the only area on Pakistan coast where three species of mangroves grow naturally. This paper presents the observations on avian fauna recorded from the area during October 1997 to June 2002. The paper reports the occurrence of 70 species of birds belonging to 10 Orders and 27 Families from the area. Out of which 37 species are migratory. The preferred habitat of various species and their status has also been given

Effect of similar feeding regime on growth and body composition of Indian major carps (Catla catla, Cirrhinus mrigala and Labeo rohita) under mono and polyculture

Growth performance and body composition of yearling Indian major carps (Catla catla, Cirrhinus mrigala and Labeo rohita) was evaluated in semi-intensive (mono and polyculture) systems for 90 days. Prior to stocking, all ponds were fertilized with organic and inorganic manures. This application was repeated every two weeks throughout the study period. Supplementary feed containing 35% protein was applied daily at 3% of wet body weight. In trial 1, all the three species gained significantly higher weights with experimental feed (F1) versus control group (F0). There was non-significant difference observed among species. In trial 2, non-significant difference was observed for net weight gain among species and between feeds. The feed conversion ratio (FCR), protein efficiency ratio (PER), protein utilization (PU), gross nitrogen retention efficiency (GNRE%) and gross energy retention efficiency (GERE%) were found non-significantly different among species in both trials, except GNRE% in polyculture, where L. rohita showed significantly higher values than its counterparts. No significant difference was observed in body composition and mineral contents among species and between feeds in both trials. In conclusion, all the three fish species performed well under monoculture system with 35% protein diet and showed significantly higher growth than the control, compared to polyculture, without any significant effect on body composition.Keywords: Artificial feed, Indian major carps, growth, proximate composition, nutrient retention efficiency, cost effectivenes

Emergence of resistance to fluoroquinolones and third-generation cephalosporins in Salmonella Typhi in Lahore, Pakistan

Extensively drug-resistant (XDR) Salmonella Typhi has been reported in Sindh province of Pakistan since 2016. The potential for further spread is of serious concern as remaining treatment options are severely limited. We report the phenotypic and genotypic characterization of 27 XDR S. Typhi isolated from patients attending Jinnah Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan. Isolates were identified by biochemical profiling; antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by a modified Kirby-Bauer method. These findings were confirmed using Illumina whole genome nucleotide sequence data. All sequences were compared to the outbreak strain from Southern Pakistan and typed using the S. Typhi genotyping scheme. All isolates were confirmed by a sequence analysis to harbor an IncY plasmid and the CTX-M-15 ceftriaxone resistance determinant. All isolates were of the same genotypic background as the outbreak strain from Sindh province. We report the first emergence of XDR S. Typhi in Punjab province of Pakistan confirmed by whole genome sequencing

Effect of Flow Rate and Disc Area Increment on the Efficiency of Rotating Biological Contactor for Treating Greywater

The performance of greywater treatment through RBC (Rotating Biological Contactor) is related to many factors including rotational speed of disc, surface area of the media, thickness of biological film; quality and flow rate of influent. The plastic media provides surface for biological slime. The slime is rotated alternatively into the settled wastewater and then into atmosphere to provide aerobic conditions for the microorganisms. In this study the performance of RBC is investigated at different flow rates and disk areas of media by introducing additional discs on the shaft of RBC. Initially efficiency of the RBC was observed on six flow rates at the disc area of 9.78m2. Furthermore optimized three flow rates were used to augment the disk area. The efficiency of RBC system was improved significantly at disk area of 11.76m2 and flow rate of 20 L/h. Under these conditions the removal of BOD5 (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) and TSS (Total Suspended Solid) was observed 83, 57 and 90% respectivel

Trends in antimicrobial resistance amongst pathogens isolated from blood and cerebrospinal fluid cultures in Pakistan (2011-2015): A retrospective cross-sectional study

While antimicrobial resistance (AMR) continues to be a major public health problem in Pakistan, data regarding trends of resistance among pathogenic bacteria remains scarce, with few studies presenting long-term trends in AMR. This study was therefore designed to analyze long-term AMR trends at a national level in Pakistan. We report here results of a comprehensive analysis of resistance, among pathogens isolated from blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), between 2011 and 2015. Susceptibility data was obtained from a local laboratory with collection points all across Pakistan (Chughtai Laboratory). Resistance proportions to most commonly used antimicrobials were calculated for each pathogen over a period of five years. While Acinetobacter species demonstrated highest resistance rates to all tested antimicrobials, a sharp increase in carbapenem resistance was the most noticeable (50%-95%) between 2011-2015. Our results also highlight the presence of third and fourth generation cephalosporins resistance in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi in Pakistan. Interestingly, where rise in AMR was being observed in some major invasive pathogens, decreasing resistance trends were observed in Staphylococcus aureus, against commonly used antimicrobials. Overall pathogens isolated from blood and CSF between 2011-2015, showed an increase in resistance towards commonly used antimicrobials

Regorafenib and Ruthenium Complex Combination Inhibit Cancer Cell Growth by Targeting PI3K/AKT/ERK Signalling in Colorectal Cancer Cells

Cancer is one of the leading cause of lethality worldwide, CRC being the third most common cancer reported worldwide, with 1.85 million cases and 850,000 deaths annually. As in all other cancers, kinases are one of the major enzymes that play an essential role in the incidence and progression of CRC. Thus, using multi-kinase inhibitors is one of the therapeutic strategies used to counter advanced-stage CRC. Regorafenib is an FDA-approved drug in the third-line therapy of refractory metastatic colorectal cancer. Acquired resistance to cancers and higher toxicity of these drugs are disadvantages to the patients. To counter this, combination therapy is used as a strategy where a minimal dose of drugs can be used to get a higher efficacy and reduce drug resistance development. Ruthenium-based compounds are observed to be a potential alternative to platinum-based drugs due to their significant safety and effectiveness. Formerly, our lab reported Ru-1, a ruthenium-based compound, for its anticancer activity against multiple cancer cells, such as HepG2, HCT116, and MCF7. This study evaluates Ru-1′s activity against regorafenib-resistant HCT116 cells and as a combination therapeutic with regorafenib. Meanwhile, the mechanism of the effect of Ru-1 alone and with regorafenib as a combination is still unknown. In this study, we tested a drug combination (Ru-1 and regorafenib) against a panel of HT29, HCT116, and regorafenib-resistant HCT116 cells. The combination showed a synergistic inhibitory activity. Several mechanisms underlying these numerous synergistic activities, such as anti-proliferative efficacy, indicated that the combination exhibited potent cytotoxicity and enhanced apoptosis induction. Disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential increased intracellular ROS levels and decreased migratory cell properties were observed. The combination exhibited its activity by regulating PI3K/Akt and p38 MAP kinase signalling. This indicates that the combination of REG/Ru-1 targets cancer cells by modulating the PI3K/Akt and ERK signalling

Effect of Plant-Fishmeal and Plant By-Product Based Feed on Growth, Body Composition and Organoleptic Flesh Qualities of Labeo rohita

Abstract.-Present study was aimed at evaluating the effect of plant-fishmeal feed and/or plant by-product based feed on growth, body composition and flesh quality of Labeo rohita. Fish fed on rice polish alone served as control (T 0 ). Fish feed ingredients were grouped together with two ingredients in each test diet i.e. guar meal and canola meal (T 1 ), soybean meal and cotton seed meal (T 2 ), guar meal and cotton seed meal (T 3 ), soybean meal and canola meal (T 4 ) and fishmeal and canola meal (T 5 ). Each treatment including control had two replicates. Earthen ponds (12) with uniform area of 0.03 ha each, were randomly stocked with 100 fish (average weight 200 g) in each. All the ponds were then randomly allotted to individual treatment including control and were fed at 4% of their wet biomass twice a day. Significantly higher growth performance, specific growth rate (SGR) and better food conversion ratio (FCR) in T 3 and T 1 than rest of the treatments suggested that guar meal and cotton seed meal, and guar meal and canola meal are better option to include in future feed formulations for maximum performance and minimum feed wastage. Fish samples showed higher protein values in T 4 , fat in T 2 , moisture contents in control, dry matter in T 1 and ash in T 5. Nonsignificant differences in flavor, juiciness, and oiliness indicated that the sensory attributes of fish flesh were not affected by feeding fish with blend of various ingredients. Our study revealed that the cotton seed meal which is considered toxic to fish and is restricted in fish feeds perform equally good and can be incorporated in future feed formulations for Labeo rohita

RNAseq of diverse spring wheat cultivars released during last 110 years

Abstract Here, we performed RNA-seq based expression analysis of root and leaf tissues of a set of 24 historical spring wheat cultivars representing 110 years of temporal genetic variations. This huge 130 tissues RNAseq dataset was initially used to study expression pattern of 97 genes regulating root growth and development in wheat. Root system architecture (RSA) is an important target for breeding stress-resilient and high-yielding wheat cultivars under climatic fluctuations. However, root transcriptome analysis is usually obscured due to challenges in root research due to their below ground presence. We also validated the dataset by performing correlation analysis between expression of RSA related genes in roots and leaves with 25 root traits analyzed under varying moisture conditions and 10 yield-related traits. The Pearson’s correlation coefficients between root phenotypes and expression of root-specific genes varied from −0.72 to 0.78, and strong correlations with genes such as DRO1, TaMOR, ARF4, PIN1 was observed. The presented datasets have multiple uses such as a) studying the change in expression pattern of genes during time, b) differential expression of genes in two very important tissues of wheat i.e., leaf and roots, and c) studying customized expression of genes associated with important phenotypes in diverse wheat cultivars. The initial findings presented here provided key insights into understanding the transcriptomic basis of phenotypic variability of RSA in wheat cultivars